Julie Yang wins English women's stroke-play - now

for British girls' event
at Royal Belfast

FROM THE ENGLISH WOMEN'S GOLF ASSOCIATION WEBSITE
Musselburgh-based South Korean Julie Yang (pictured with the trophy) won the English women’s open strokeplay championship by two shots at Whittington Heath, Staffordshire, after a final round duel with Gloucestershire’s Charlotte Ellis.
The 15-year-old, who finished the 72-hole event on four-under par, also won the U18 and U23 titles and said: “I am very pleased. In the mid-summer you are constantly playing and winning one tournament helps you with the next one. It’s like a chain, if you have a good tournament you feel there’s a chance the next one will also be a feel-good time.”
She added: “It’s been a long journey. I was 14th after the first round and I knew I had a lot of catching up to do.” Julie started with a three-over 75 but then added three sub-par rounds of 71, 69, 69.
The final day of the championship offered spectators everything from drama to low scoring – and two holes in one.
Charlotte Ellis (Minchinhampton) scored one of those aces, with a six iron on the 152-yard fourth hole in her morning round. It helped her to a five-under par 67 and after 54 holes she was on top of the leaderboard on two-under par.
Meanwhile, Julie Yang shot a third round 69 and was one shot behind, in a tie with 14-year-old Charley Hull (Woburn), who went on to finish third.
Charlotte and Julie were paired together and they moved away from the field as they traded shots in the final round. The advantage see-sawed between them but after the par-three 15th, where Charlotte three-putted to lose the lead, they were tied together on three-under par.
They both parred 16 and 17 but the deadlock broke on the par five 18th. Julie hit the green in two and birdied the hole for a 69, while Charlotte’s second found a greenside bunker and she ended up with a bogey.
To spectators, the golf had all the appearance of matchplay – but Julie was determined to avoid that. “I was completely focussed and really into the game, I wasn’t thinking about winning or losing. This wasn’t matchplay, it was a strokeplay event, you have to play your own game and if you do there will be a reward.”
Julie has already won the Welsh open strokeplay championship and now heads to next week’s British girls and then the British strokeplay. She was also runner-up in the German amateur championship and played in the Ricoh Women’s British Open
She has also won the Paul Lawrie Scottish schoolgirls title plus the Danish women's open amateur championship.
This was the second year in a row that Charlotte – an England international – has had to settle for the runners-up place in this championship.
Her 67 was the low round of the championship but altogether 16 players took advantage of good scoring conditions on the last day to post below-par results.
Yorkshire’s Nikki Dunn (Harrogate) provided another of the day’s highlights when she also had a hole-in-one on the 164-yard seventh hole, where she used a five iron. It was Nikki’s fourth hole in one and she’s had them all in competition.
The U23 County Team Trophy was won by Cheshire, represented by Rachael Goodall (Heswall) and Natalie Lowe (Prestbury). They beat runners-up Yorkshire by four shots.
LEADING FINAL TOTALS
Par 288 (4x72)
284 Julie Yang (Korea) 75 71 69 69
286 Charlotte Ellis (Minchinhampton) 72 75 67 72
288 Charley Hull (Woburn) 72 72 71 73
291 Kelsey Macdonald (Nairn Dunbar) 71 74 75 71; Hannah Barwood (Knowle) 75 73 71 72
293 Charlie Douglass (Brocket Hall) 75 75 73 70; Ami Storey (Ponteland) 74 75 72 72; Charlotte Thomas (Singapore Island) 76 76 69 72
294 Sophie Godley (Lindrick) 73 75 76 70.
Other Scottish scores:
303 Megan Briggs (Kilmacolm) 76 72 80 75 (jt 26th).
318 Laura Murray (Alford) 78 76 77 87 (38th).

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